Isabelle's Jinx
by adanudowaya
Summary: This story is a brief look into Dizzy's past. A 'what if' story about what could have infuenced her younger years, and the affect it could have had on her future.


Isabelle's Jinx  
  
"Isabelle! Isabelle, wake up!" Isabelle opened one eye cautiously, then groaned and shoved her brother away.  
"Go away, Jack!"  
"But Isabelle! We are going to the circus today!"  
Isabelle caught the excitement in her sibling's tone, and bounced from the bed, fully awake. "That is today? Whee!" She threw up her arms and twirled around. "We are going to see Uncle Phil and Aunt Jasmine, and Katrina, and Antonio, and--"  
"Well, come on!" Jack pulled Isabelle's arm unmercifully, practically dragging her from her room.  
"Wait, Jack! I have to get dressed!" Jack looked at his own PJ's and then his sister's.  
"Girls!" he moaned. "Hurry up!" He dashed back into his own room to change into day clothes and was back waiting for Isabelle in thirty seconds. His rush was pointless, however. The little girl took her time getting ready, picking out her favorite pink dress and a matching bow for her long, dark, hair.  
It was her mother that finally coaxed her from the room. "Isabelle, Honey, come along now! Papa is waiting in the car!" In seconds, the two children ran to the car and hopped in, glowing from exitement.  
Isabelle was expecially excited about this trip to the circus. Today, she would get to go into Aunt Jasmine's tent for the first time. Aunt Jasmine was her favorite aunt, her mother's oldest sister. Isabelle had always taken more after the Gypsies on her mother's side than the Spanish on her father's side. She loved all of the acts of the circus, but today, she would have her fortune read by her Aunt Jasmine.  
Finally, they were there. Papa took Jack to see Uncle Phil in the sword swollower's tent and Mama took Isabelle to Aunt Jasmine's fortune telling tent.  
"Ah, Isabelle! It is time for you to know what your future holds!"  
Isabelle was frightened at first, the woman huddled in the darkest part of the tent looked nothing like her Aunt. After a she was a few steps closer, though, she recognized her and gladly took the seat across from her as she was directed while her mother sat inconspicuoisly in a corner.  
The older woman started to wave her hands back and forth over the objects on the table, calling out occasionally in some chanting language Isabelle could not understand. After what seemed to be a very long time to the little girl, she stopped and opened her eyes.  
"Give me your hand, Isabelle." she ordered. The child did as she was bid.  
Jasmine took the tiny hand in her's and carefully traced over each line. "Long life... good health..." the woman wispered softly as she ran her fingers along the little palm. Suddenly, she stopped. Her eyes widened with a gasp and she threw Isabelle's hand down as if it had burned her. "Get out of my tent!" she commanded, her voice laced with fear.  
Isabelle turned frightened eyes on her mother. She felt safer when she saw her mother's face was flaming with anger. "What is the meaning of this, Jasmine?" she demanded.  
Jasmine answered her, carefully averting her eyes from Isabelle. "This child is a jinx! Her love is a death curse!"  
"I do not believe it!" the other woman countered.  
"Take her away from here! She is destined to be a black widow, she will bring death to any man who she wishes life! Take her away from my children!"  
Isabelle was shocked by the words coming from her beloved Aunt's mouth. She turned back to her mother, waiting for her to come to her defence. Mama's face was not red anymore, though. It was white. She was staring at Isabelle with horror on her features.  
"Mama," Isabelle wimpered, but she was cut off.  
"Come, child!" Isabelle's mother dragged her from the tent.  
"Mama will be ok now," The girl thought, but when she looked at her mother, she was amazed to see that her anger was now pointed towards her.  
"What have you done to us?" Mama asked in an agonized voice. "You evil child!"  
"I'm sorry, Mama. What did I do wrong? I love you, Mama!" Isabelle tried desperately to find out what had angered her Mama.  
"Don't you ever say that again! Do you hear me? Never!"  
Isabelle could not understand. Mama was even madder now. The child had to run to keep up with the rapid pace her mother had set for the car. When they got to the car, Isabelle found herself thrown into the backseat, then Mama was walking again, looking for Papa and Jack. Isabelle huddled on the seat. The hot summer sun made it nearly unbearable in the car. Before her family had returned, she had curled up in the floor and was fast asleep.  
  
Issie opened her eyes and surveyed the surroundings silently before getting out of bed. Finally she coaxed her aching bones out of her bed. She ran one hand through her short hair, then reached to pull on an old pair of jeans and a t-shirt, and she was ready to start the day.  
"Issie, are you ready for school?" Jack popped around the corner just as she emerged from her room. He let his eyes slide over her haphazard choice of apparel and one side of his face jerked upwards a bit. He coughed and schooled his features. "I thought we would go in early today and get in some time on the court. Maybe you can finally get that jump shot down."  
"Sounds good. I'm ready." She grabbed her backpack and followed Jack out of the house.  
As they walked toward the school, Issie found her eyes lingering on some of the girls they passed. All of them had pretty clothes on, their hair was nicely fixed, a few had boyfriends hovering close. It had been four years since she had worn a dress or fixed her hair. She could still remember that day at the circus. When they had gotten home that night, Mama had cut her hair and taken all of her pretty clothes away. She had told her to never tell Papa or Jack that she loved them ever again. And she never had.  
Papa had stood up for her, and so had Jack, but Mama had been unmovable. Papa had finally given in. He wasn't as superstitious as Mama, but he didn't want to push it. He had pulled Isabelle out of dance and music and started to call her Issie. Jack hadn't wanted to give up, but he had no choice. He just watched helplessly as his sister's world was turned upside down.  
Issie and Jack reached the gym and started to warm up for their game. In moments, Issie had forgotten all about her earlier thoughts. She loved playing with her brother. Baseball, basketball, football, soccer-- she was good at them all.  
"All right, now. Try moving your hand more like this when you shoot." Jack demonstrated for her.  
Issie copied Jack's movements, and the ball fell perfectly into the net. "Whoo-hoo!" She cried. She twirled around, her hands flung out. Jack tried to duck her mad spin, but one of her hands caught him square on the chin and he was knocked flat.  
"I'm sorry!" Issie knelt by him, genuine remorse on her face.  
"Hat's ok," Jack said slowly, his hand cupping his jaw and his speech slow and slurred. "It wos an acidont, Dissie." He laughed at his own attempt to speak. He stood up and carefully moved his jaw, as if to see if it was broken.  
Issie laughed and spun around again, making Jack flinch. "Did I scare you?" she asked playfully.  
"No, but you sure made my head spin! He reached both hands to his head, and moaned mournfully. "Oh, I'm so dizzy! How do you spin like that without making yourself dizzy, Issie?"  
Issie laughed again. "It's easy! See?" she spun again, this time retreiving the forgotten basketball and stoping mid-swing to launch it. It fell through the net with a soft 'whoosh!'.  
"That's it, Issie!" Jack joked, "from now on, you are Dizzy!"  
The nickname stuck. It seemed to fit her perfectly.  
  
Dizzy streched out in her bed, one eye drifting to the clock on her bed stand. "Oh, no!" she screeched. Her alarm hadn't gone off! She jumped from her bed and quickly dressed, then ran all the way to school.  
As she walked in five minutes late to her first class, she thought, "What a way to start high school!" The teacher glared at her and Dizzy quickly found a seat in the back of the room. She sank down as low as she could go and wished she could disappear.  
By lunchtime, her day had gone from bad to worse. All the girls in her classes avoided her, she was the only girl to try out for the football team, and she was the only girl enrolled in metalworking. The guys in her classes called her a tomboy, and the guys on the team were none too glad to hear that she was going to be first string.  
Dizzy sat down at an empty table and stared at her food, as if it could make the whole day vanish. She jumped with surprise when she heard a voice.  
"Hi! Mind if we sit here?"  
Dizzy looked up at the two boys standing before the table. "Sure, suit yourselves." she answered, her voice just above a growl.  
"Thanks!" The blonde haired kid who answered didn't seem to mind her attitude, the dark haired one didn't look so sure. "My name is Carl. This is my friend Jonny. What's your name?"  
"Dizzy."  
"That's a different name. Were did you get it?"  
"My brother." Carl stopped tring to make conversation then, and he and Jonny dug into their food. Their plates were half empty when Jonny spoke.  
"You are the girl on the football team, right?"  
"Yeah," Dizzy prepared herself for another round of teasing.  
"Cool! I made the team, to. You know, we are pretty lucky. We are the only freshmen to make the team this year. I heard some of the guys talking about it."  
"Really? That is good!" Dizzy forgot all about her bad mood, and soon the three were talking like old friends.  
When Dizzy returned home that night, she figured that the day had not been such a waste after all. She had two new friends.  
  
Dizzy opened her eyes and lay still for a moment. Something was wrong. Something was missing. Then she remembered. Yesterday, Jack had left for boot camp. Nothing would be the same again. She remembered her Mama and Papa hugging him goodbye, telling him they loved him and were proud of him. Then they had left.  
"Dizzy," Jack had said to her, "I'm going to miss you most of all."  
Dizzy had wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close. Just as he was walking out of sight, she whispered, "I love you, Jack." Then she turned to follow her parents away. Her mind and heart rebelled aginst her parents ruling that had snatched away her ability to express her feelings outloud. She turned back to Jack, now just a dot on the horizon. "I love you Jack. And I'll see you again. I promise." She turned and hurried after her parents, her heart jumping with each step and her feet beating out a rythem that seemed to scream "Jinx! Jinx! Jinx..."  
  
Graduation day dawned bright and clear. Dizzy smiled. This was the day. Today she would put school behind her and move on to greater things. And Jack. She could hardly wait to get to school.  
"What do you mean you are going to join the Mobile Infantry! Why would you want to do that?" Jonny and Carl looked at Dizzy in disbelief.  
"Come on, it will be fun! Go places, see things..." her voice turned pleading. "You'll have fun, I know it! Where is your sence of adventure?"  
"Where is your common sense?" Jonny countered.  
Dizzy just smirked.  
Carl gave his wispy, knowing grin. He was thinking about joining himself. Carl and Dizzy stepped aside for a moment, intent on their conversation. Jonny walked over to where Carmen was standing.  
He returned in a few moments, his face red. "Um, I'm joining the fleet!" he stated. Dizzy just shook her head.  
  
Dizzy lay on her bunk and looked in dismay at the letter in her hands. It couldn't be true. Jonny and Carl stood by her, questions written all over their faces.  
Dizzy had been so sure. So certain that she was not a jinx. After all, Papa was still alive. So were Jonny and Carl, and all the rest of her MI squad. Still, she had not spoken the poisious words to any of them. Only Jack.  
The letter in her hand said it all. Jack was MIA.  
  
Dizzy felt like crying, but she didn't. She stretched out her sore muscles on her bunk and stared at some unseeable place far away.  
War has a way of changing a person. Dizzy knew this now. Jack had only been the first. After him came Zander, then Carl, then Gossard, then Jonny. Dizzy was a jinx. There was no way to deny it in her mind. Not everyone had died, but then again, she had never again spoken those fateful words. Zander was dead. Carl had just come out of a coma and Gossard was recovering from a few broken bones. Jonny had just had a near brush with death.  
Dizzy curled her hands into fists. She couldn't let it go on. It was just to dangerous. She had to put a stop to it somehow. But how? How could you stop a jinx?  
A siren wailed, warning the squad of another drop in the near future. Dizzy forced her sore muscles to the drop room. It had to end.  
  
"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust..." Dizzy could bearly hold her eyes open. They had fought the bugs all night long, and now, as they skimmed the lake in a transport ship, they were dropping the ashes of Lt. Razac into the water.  
He had been like a father to her. He had been her teacher in high school, and and her superior in the MI. Now he was gone. Was this her fault to? It had to be. Who else could be blamed?  
Now she knew that she could never tell, never say those words that burned into her soul. She glanced over at the man she loved but could never tell. She loved him too much to risk his life. Even if it meant watching him walk out of her life forever.  
  
Dizzy woke slowly, her mind knowing something was wrong, but unable to quite pick it out. Then it hit her. No sirens. No call to battle. No sound at all. It had ended. Just yesterday, it had all ended. All of it.  
It was hard to believe it was over. At long last, the bug war was over. They were victorious. Dizzy could still hear those words in her ear, "It's all over now. It's finished. We can go home-- you and me. Dizzy, I love you. Will you marry me?"  
Just as loud echoed her reply. "No." she couldn't tell him. She loved him to much.  
Those words were followed by more words, vibrant, insistant words. "I'm a flaw in your method, Dizzy. I've always loved you. And even if you were a jinx, I would rather hear you say those words and die today than live another day without you."  
Dizzy turned and walked away.  
  
Dizzy streched and rose from the floor that was strewn with pictures. How often she had looked at these pictures, snapshots of her life. Here was one of her as a child, in a pink dress. Here was another, Jack and her facing off on the basketball court. And here was one of Jonny and her, right after the championship football game. And one of Carl and her on graduation day. And one of...  
Dizzy's eyes drifted away from the picture and focused somewere on the distace. Here was a picture of a little girl in a pink dress, being held up by her Papa. But it didn't hold her gaze. What held her gaze was a picture of a little girl running across the yard, her Papa right behind her. Dizzy's smile got larger as the girl called out to her.  
"Uncle Jack! Uncle Jack! Mama, Come see, it's Uncle Jack!" 


End file.
